Training the brain: Practical applications of neural plasticity from the intersection of cognitive neuroscience, developmental psychology, and prevention science

Training the brain: Practical applications of neural plasticity from the intersection of cognitive   neuroscience, developmental psychology, and prevention science. Bryck, Richard L. & Fisher, Philip A. American Psychologist, Jul 25, 2011, No Pagination Specified. doi: 10.1037/a0024657

The seventh chapter in our textbook emphasizes the brain’s plasticity throughout development. The brain is capable of changing and growing throughout life, especially in the critical periods where a vast array of information is taken in and skills develop more rapidly. I researched an article which examined brain plasticity throughout development, and in more depth, two types of “brain-training exercises” and their usefulness.

Brain plasticity can be a good and a bad thing, as evidenced by information in the article I researched, as well as the text. For instance, the study of the rats which lived in enriched environments versus the rats which lived in laboratory cages resulted in “enriched-environment” rats which performed markedly better on maze tests than their laboratory counterparts. Their brains thrived with the abundance of environmental stimulation. It also resulted in rats which showed deficiencies because they matured in a non-stimulating environment (lab cages).

This is one example of myriad research undertakings which have shown both the negative effects of a sub-par environment on the brain and the positive effects of a stimulating environment on it.

There is also research that shows that sometimes negative effects are reversible. After examining some rats that were exposed to stress early in their lives and then switched to an enriching environment, researchers noted that the rats had an increase in brain weight and size, an increase in dendritic branching and length, an increase in quantity of synapses, and an improvement in spatial memory tasks.

In the article I researched, Fisher and Bryck wondered how applicable such research would be to humans, who have more complex brain structures than rats and other animals commonly used in research.

There is one area, they noted, in which evidence of plasticity in both humans and animals is mounting. This is exercise; neurogenesis after exercise is an effect observed in both animals and humans. Also, older individuals who followed an exercise regimen for a year, when compared to a control group which just did toning and stretching exercises, had an increase in anterior hippocampus volume. The stretching group actually lost the same amount of volume in a year.

The authors of the article I researched examined the two common “brain-training methods” used for increasing brain plasticity in children and compared the methods’ usefulness, effectiveness, etc.

The first method is laboratory-based training. This method primarily involves a computer-based, timed, repeated performance task. It works on a specific neurobehavior at any given time. Its goals are to improve overall psychosocial well-being, reduce behavioral problems, and reduce symptoms of clinical disorders. It historically has shown only marginal improvements, but recently, improvements in the method have brought more sound results. One benefit is the ease by which this method rules out confounds.

Neurobiologically informed ecological intervention is the other method. These interventions occur in a natural setting like a home or school and have higher external validity than the laboratory-based training. These interventions have often been successful, but are also very time-inefficient and costly.